Anywhere But Here
by CustardMouse
Summary: She had packed up and left eleven years ago without the intention of ever seeing them again. Now she has to face her fears and go back if she wants to save him, her team, and ultimately, herself. This story follows our blackbird as she comes home to roost
1. Chapter 1

**Anywhere But Here - A Teen Titans Story**

A quick breakdown for your convenience: This story is set in an alternate future, following the cartoon show rather then the comics. In this, Raven had left the team at age 17 for (as far as you know) unknown reasons. Eleven years have passed since then with little to no contact between them. This would mean that the current ages of the main characters are:

Raven : 28

Robin : 29

Beast Boy : 28

Starfire: 28

Cyborg : 30

As you may have surmised, I do not own the Teen Titans nor will I ever. Even if I did, I would have no idea where to put them.

* * *

Anywhere but here.

Raven would have rather been anywhere else in the world than in this grungy little bar on the outskirts of Las Angeles. Anywhere. Stuck in the centre of the earth, standing beside a ticking time bomb… Heck, she would rather be in the clutches of her demon father than here. Instead she rocked slowly back and forth on her broken bar stool, earning annoyed glares from other patrons for the incessant squeaking.

Screw them.

Two weeks ago Robin had tracked her down to deliver a message, except he no longer went by that name. Instead he used Nightwing now, although it would be hard for her to shake the image of the Boy Wonder from her mind. Apparently something big was going down and he needed to see her urgently. He refused to leak information over the phone and demanded a face-to-face audience. She had almost refused him when he dropped the bomb.

Whatever was going down had something to do with Beast Boy… With Garfield.

Damnit, Robin knew just how to get her attention. She agreed to meet the bastard on his terms, which took her half way across the country. She had packed up and left her small apartment in a rush, not that there was all that much to take. The only important things are the ones you can take away with you in a hurry.

_Squeak. Squeak. Squeeeeeak._

She glanced at the clock hanging on the wall behind the bartender's head; ignoring the dirty look he shot her. He deserved the damn noise. Maybe next time he would lay down some money to fix the chair.

It was just past 11 o'clock, still half an hour before her 'date' arrived. She closed her eyes tightly and frowned, willing away the approaching headache. She had arrived in Las Angeles this morning at dawn and had been wasting time since then. When Robin got here he better be prepared for a very, very ticked off woman.

Speak of the devil.

A man strutted into the bar, swivelling his head as if he was looking for someone but Raven assumed he already knew where she was and that the act was for show. Knowing him, he had been secretly spying on her for the past hour.

He looked different in civilian clothes. Softer almost. He wore a black leather jacket and sunglasses regardless of the night sky. He fit in with the bar crown and moved seamlessly towards her. Sitting down in the next stool, he ordered a drink and looked her over. She knew what he saw.

She was a little taller now and had lost the baby fat from her face. Her hair was much longer since they last parted and was styled so that it covered her chakra stone. Her body had become even curvier and was still largely unscarred, except for a small tattoo on her shoulder blade; a black bird taking flight with a red bow tied around his talon. It meant a lot to her but she would never tell anyone why.

Her eyes were probably the most changed since their teen years. They were still that dark, unnatural purple but if her reflection was accurate, they were a few shades dimmer than before. A spark had been lost and she was sure Robin could easily see the cruel, harsh edge to her eyes. The absence of hope.

His drink arrived and he took a long sip before settling himself into a more comfortable position. She suppressed a smirk when his stool squeaked louder than hers ever had.

"Sooo…." He started before she cut him off.

"Scratch the formalities. I don't want to be here and I'm sure you have better places to be than this broken down scum trap. Why did you contact me?"

"Maybe I like this bar. Maybe I come here every Friday night to play pool with the guys" he replied slowly, not even bothering to hide his own smirk. She gave him a pointed look as his chair screeched and drew glares from even the darkest corners of the small tavern. He had the decency to look sheepish.

"Exactly what the hell is so important that you would try to contact me when I left so long ago? I stormed off and you promised to leave me alone… Why now?" She asked again, drawing his attention back to the discussion at hand.

"It wasn't so long ago, Raven. Only eleven years."

"I have no patience for this, and if you can't gauge that much then it really has been too long." She replied quickly, trying to ignore the number of years she had been gone. She had forgotten for a reason and did not care to remember.

Robin leaned back in his chair and took another swig from the glass, watching her over the rim. She fought the urge to shift uncomfortably in her seat. She wouldn't give him the satisfaction of knowing how nervous she actually was.

He lowered his drink and leaned forward, pulling her in with him.

"I can't talk about it here," He whispered close to her ear. "Too many prying eyes and ears. Just know that your help is needed if you ever want to see Logan again."

"I had left with the intention of never seeing any of you ever again" she shrugged, straightening her back. "Why should I care now?"

Even to her own ears the excuse sounded hollow and cheap.

"Because, if you don't, it's not just his life he's going to lose. It's something even more important" he replied, still whispering in that harsh and urgent tone.

She cocked her head to the side, trying not to let her curiosity shine through.

"I can't say anymore here. You have to come with me."

She weighed the options in her head. She could go back to her quiet, dull life and pretend this never happened. She could disregard the painful throbbing in her heart and leave this dusty bar in the past. She could live out the rest of her days trying not to imagine what happened to Garfield and guessing whether or not he survived. Or she could grasp Robin's outstretched hand and start things over.

Her hand might as well have moved on it's own. It was in his before she bothered thinking of the many mistakes and hurt this decision could mean for her. He pulled her up off her stool as he got off his own. The screeching noise was horrible and not the best omen to this new beginning.

She paid no attention to the noise and the glares, instead taking one brave step forward and ignoring her shaking legs. She knew she had to take the chance of getting her life back.

Robin had the good grace to not mention the shaking she was sure he could feel through their close proximity. Maybe he still had some good qualities after all.

Neither of them noticed the bartender's eyes following them across the room and out the door before picking the phone up off the wall and dialling, a look of grim pleasure plastered on his lined face.

* * *

"So, where to?" Asked Raven as they exited the door, which also squeaked. She tried to sound casual.

Robin quirked an eyebrow in her direction and offered a sly little smile.

"Why, to Titans Tower of course. I'm sure your old room is still intact."

Raven stopped in her tracks, a look of mild horror on her face that was probably quite comical to any outside party.

Oh god.

Anywhere but there.

* * *

All right, this seems to be lining up to be a chaptered story, so if you have any complaints, corrections, or constructive criticism, I would love to hear it. No idea how fast I will be updating because this story was anything but planned. I just knew I wanted to do something with the characters a little older and a little darker, not to say there won't be lighter humour. TTFN.


	2. Chapter 2

**Anywhere but Here**

Anywhere but here.

Raven would have rather been anywhere but in this chilled car heading towards her childhood home. The bottom of a ravine, the stomach of some cruel monster… Instead she twiddled her thumbs in impatience.

Robin sat beside her with his hands locked firmly on the wheel and his eyes focused on the road. His mouth was set into a hard, grim line. She did not like the looks of this and glanced towards the door handle. Maybe if she…

Click

The bastard had locked her in!

"Please don't, Raven," he whispered softly. He knew as well as she did that it was a request and not an order. If she decided to bolt, there was nothing he could do about it.

She sighed and settled back into her seat, trying to get comfortable against the cold leather. It wasn't working. She would never have guessed, or rather cared about how cold it got at night in the desert until now. Apparently Robin had already known, judging by his thick jacket and gloved hands. He had just chosen not to tell her, of course, to avoid the possibility that someone would overhear and use the information for evil.

All was quiet for another half hour until Raven finally chose to speak up.

"Can you still not tell me anything, Robin?"

"First of all, my name is Nightwing now. Second of all, I cannot guarantee that this car is not bugged. We can talk as long as we don't bring up Logan."

Raven huffed and rubbed her hands in an attempt to warm them. Man, Robin was annoying, more so then she remembered.

"First of all **Robin**, Nightwing is a stupid name. I mean really, what's with the bird theme? Secondly, you seem overly paranoid," Raven complained, in hopes of lifting her own spirit by crushing his.

Robin quirked an eyebrow but kept his eyes on the road.

"This coming from the only other member of the team with a bird orientated name."

"At least I don't change mine."

"Not according to my sources," smiled Robin. "From what I hear, you have changed your name no less than thirty-six times in the past eleven years. You've moved almost as often."

"You've been spying on me!?"

"Duh! How else would I have known where to find you?" He was beginning to sound more and more like the teenager she had left behind.

Raven sat quietly for a couple more minutes before seeming to find a loophole in the strict conversation guidelines.

"So… Does this mean we can talk about the rest of the team, as long as I stop asking about this urgent mission? Can you fill me in on the others?"

He tensed up for a second before relaxing again and she had to wonder if her question surprised him. What, had he expected her not to care about her companions? She wasn't that frosty.

"Sure, I can fill you in to about a year ago. After that we get too close to our current problem. Let's see… I went off on my own for three years when the team finally broke up, which was about two years after your hasty exit. I spent the time training and it was then that I was given, as you put it, my other "bird themed" name."

"Given?" Asked Raven, somewhat perplexed.

"Yes, given. Apparently ancient monks hand out names like candy. That is beside the point. During that same time period of three years, Starfire returned to her own planet in order to restore peace. She married and took the throne fairly early, before - " Raven cut him off sharply.

"What do you mean married!? I thought… I mean you and her… Wasn't there…" She trailed off uncertainly and avoided making eye contact.

"Yes, we did share something in our younger years… And maybe it would have continued if I had not disbanded the team and left on my own," Robin said softly, his voice laced with pain.

"…But…" Started Raven but Robin quickly took control of the conversation again.

"Anyway, Star married and ruled Tamaran with an iron fist. Soon the planet began to return to its former glory and she fell in love with her husband in the process."

"Wait, fell in love with? Didn't she love him when they married?"

"No," Robin sighed as if he were explaining this to a toddler. "It was an arranged marriage for the sake of her planet. Starfire gladly accepted."

"Does this gentleman have a name?"

"Probably," responded Robin in a tired tone and Raven decided not to push it.

"**Anyway**, she had just began to feel for him when civil war broke out. Some resented Star for stripping her sister, Blackfire, of her birth right and claiming throne. In the coming months, her husband was struck down and killed. She slaughtered the group responsible for his death and calmed the war before turning the throne over to her brother. She still wears mourning colours for her loss."

Raven sat in stunned silence for almost half an hour before speaking up again.

"Since when did she have a brother?" Raven asked, disgruntled by her lack of knowledge.

"She has always had a brother. He just didn't cause problems, so we didn't hear about him as often as Blackfire," Robin laughed, probably amused by her obvious discontentment.

"So, what about Cyborg?" She asked, trying to keep the blood from rushing to her cheeks.

"Ah yes, we did get a little off topic. Cyborg began working for S.T.A.R. industries and has since upgraded his cybernetic parts. As far as I can tell, he made good money even though he had to put up with working beside his father. Enough to support himself and his wife - "

"Wait, what!? Someone else got married?"

"Yes, Cyborg. Weren't you listening?"

The following glare could have melted through steel, so Robin wisely decided to divulge further.

"Yeah, Cy eventually managed to woo Jinx away from Kid Flash. Maybe he had an easier time at it because she had already switched sides. When her relationship with Bart hit the rocks, Cy was waiting with his arms wide open. She fell hard and after sixteen months of dating, with two breaks in between, they were married."

"So what, did something tragic happen to them too?" Raven asked, still feeling somewhat bitter about the previous news.

"Nah, still happily married and with their third child on the way. He had wanted me to track you down for the wedding but I told him I had lost track of you - "

"Which was a lie."

" – a long time ago. Man Rae, let me finish my two bits."

"Never call me Rae. Ever." She whispered with more force than she had meant to use. Robin clenched his jaw and stared stonily down the highway.

"I'm sorry. Let's continue." She offered him a small smile to show her sincerity.

"Right. Anyway, about three years ago we met up for a reunion and decided to band together to protect our city once again. It had fallen from grace in our years away, more than you would believe. I mean, I had been sleuthing around Gotham since returning from training and Star had been planet hopping since the war. Cyborg had settled down and raised a family. We hadn't even though about the damn city in years. When we saw what had happened to it… Well, we had to help. Heroes and all that."

Raven had to smother a snort that begged to escape. Apparently, they had changed less than she thought. They were still such pushovers.

"We tried to track down Logan." As soon as Robin said this she was once again at attention. "We searched the world, using all the resources at our disposal. Never thought to search Jump City though. By the time we finally found him, it was already too late."

"What do you mean by - " Robin cut her off as surely as she had done to him so many times before.

"Look, a motel. What do you say we hunker down for the night here?"

He never gave her a chance to answer before swerving into the parking lot and causing her to hit her head on the window.

* * *

She was tired now and was glad that Robin had finally managed to square things off with the manager. Turns out, he didn't like being woken up at 4:00 am. Go Figure.

Robin unlocked the door and ushered her in. He found the light switch and soon the room was illuminated. She liked the room better with the light off. The room was a hell made of plush brown fabrics splattered with stains she did not trust and peeling orange paint.

She tossed her bag on the bed and began rummaging through it, not realizing Robin was still there until he spoke up.

"Now were going to have to share this room tonight because we're trying to lay low. The manager thinks we just eloped and that's the reason for the late night stop. The truth is much worse than that, of course - "

"Excuse me? As in, eloping with me would be bad?"

"What I mean of course is… Not that," said Robin, stumbling over his words. "It's just that I have this thing for another girl and although you're really pretty, you just don't do it for me and – shutting up now."

"That's what I thought." Raven went back to looking through her bag for bedclothes.

"I will of course take the floor and leave the bed for you, but we need to share the room, okay?"

"Yes, that will be no problem, only…" She trailed off into an embarrassed silence.

"Raven? Raaaaven? Raven!" Robin crept forward and peered over her shoulder to see what was wrong. He promptly turned bright red.

Lying just inside the opening of her bag was the see-through mesh fabric of her nightgown or rather, her skimpy negligee. She must have grabbed it in her hurry to leave her apartment a couple days ago, not knowing she would be sharing a bedroom with her former leader.

She wondered if the roots of her hair had turned as red as her face.

She did not want to be here.

Anywhere but here.


	3. Chapter 3

Anywhere but here.

Raven would have rather been anywhere but standing in front of this tall tower. Waist deep in lava, tarred and feathered… Instead she was standing on the rocky shore of an island, trying to ignore the seawater that had somehow gotten into her boots.

She had though the worst had come when she pulled the mesh fabric from her bag two nights ago. Luckily, Robin believed himself to be a gentlemen and left the room for her to change. When he came back, she was just leaving the bathroom. He had stared for a moment before turning sharply away and leaving through the door. By the time he came back, she was under the thick brown blanket that draped the bed.

In the morning, they managed to get dressed again with little difficulty and hopped in the car. The next day was spent in relative silence, not for lack of trying on Robin's part. She just wasn't all that talkative.

Robin decided to drive straight through the night and Raven raised no objection. The pale mesh fabric could stay in her bag for another night.

Arriving this morning in Jump City, Raven was surprised to see how far the city had fallen. It was worse than any of the slums she had lived in during the past eleven years. Drug dealers set up on street corners in broad daylight as the police smoked up in their car down the block. The "ladies of the night" were apparently no longer restricted by the rising sun and strutted down the sidewalks. The sunlight illuminated the cuts and bruises dusting their skin. The buildings were in shambles and the streets in disrepair. It looked as if the concrete had been blasted away in battle.

Her heart clenched painfully when they drove past the decrepitude pizza parlor that had been a home away from home away from home.

Soon, she could see the giant 'T' looming in the distance and she began to panic again. Her palms were sweating terribly and just when she had made the decision to bolt, Robin stopped the car. It was time to fly across the water to the island.

Only the idiot refused to fly. Saying something about "being spotted" and "not a good idea". She would have laughed at his paranoia if her mouth was not suddenly dry. He escorted her into a wooden boat that looked like everything else in the city. It looked like it would turn to pulp if you blew on it too hard.

And it almost had turned to pulp, if the squelching in her boots was any indicator.

So here she stood, with her head cranked back to look up at the tower that represented everything she had left behind. It was dizzying.

In fact, she was starting to get a headache.

"Robin, I don't think I can do this. I'm really not ready to be back."

"It's Nightwing, and that's nonsense," he said, almost yelling to be heard over the waves crashing against the shore. He stalked past her up the rocks to the main door of Titans Tower. She had not choice but to follow.

He stopped at the door and turned right, to a screen implanted in the side of wall and pressed one of the many grey buttons beneath it.

After a few seconds, the top of a young girls head appeared in the screen. She had mulatto skin and dark hair plaited into a multitude of fine braids and pulled back in a ponytail. Her eyes were large and dark; her cheek was smudged with oil.

"Who is it?" Asked the little girl in a singsong voice. Robin just sighed loudly.

"Oh! It's Uncle Robin! Uncle Robin!"

"Again, my name is Nightwing now…"

"Oh no, Daddy says I have to call you Uncle Robin because it 'boils your beans'. He says it keeps you from getting 'too full of yourself'," said the little girl, jumping excitedly up and down.

"Why don't you tell Daddy to get his butt down here so I can kick it?"

"Nuh-Uh! My Daddy could whoop you good. Just you wait, Uncle Robin. I'll go and get him."

With that, the little girl was gone from the screen. Raven turned to Robin with a raised eyebrow.

"Uncle Robin?" She drawled.

"Yes. Her name is Chloe and she is Vic's oldest child. And don't you dare make fun of me, because you will soon discover that you are 'Aunty Raven'."

Before Raven could voice her displeasure, a man appeared on the screen. It took her a moment to realize that the man was indeed Cyborg. His human half still looked the same, with the addition of a few laugh lines, but his cybernetic half pulsed purple instead of blue.

"Chloe tells me there is someone out here looking for a fight," he said in his great booming voice. Raven felt her knees go weak at the sound of it. God, she had missed him.

"Yeah, me! Apparently you've been telling her to call me by the wrong name. Something about keeping me in my place," Robin replied in an equally loud voice, but you could hear the underlying laughter.

"Well, that, and the fact that it makes life in the Tower more interesting. What are you doing back so soon? I thought you were looking for Raven?"

"I'm obviously back because I found her," said Robin smugly, reaching with one hand to pull her into the view of the screen. Cyborg stared at her in a shocked sort of disbelief.

"Boo-yah…," he whispered before darting out of sight. Raven was just about to wonder where he went when she heard crashing from beyond the door. Before she could back away, the door snapped open and out rushed Cyborg, pulling her into the monster of all hugs.

He chattered incessantly without her listening. She was too wrapped up in the novelty of being held by another human being. It had been so long… She could feel the pressure building behind her eyes and fought the urge to cry.

She had just gotten her emotions under control again when Cyborg held her at arms length to get a better look at her.

"You've grown so much. You're beautiful, Raven." He seemed to realize that 'Rae' was a taboo word.

She couldn't hold it in anymore. The tears trickled down her face.

And the boat behind them exploded.

Good riddance.

____________________________________________________________________________

After her little escapade, Raven was led into the Tower still shaking splinters from her hair. She had threatened both men with death if they ever mentioned her outburst and they both managed nervous, lopsided grins.

They took her to the consul room and sat her on the couch. Robin slinked away to the kitchen as Cyborg wandered into the hallway, presumably looking for his children. Raven was left to look out the large window at the sea and pick through memories.

Before she could become too distracted, Robin returned with a cup of herbal tea and set in on the table in front of her. She just stared.

"Why do you guys still have my tea in the Tower? Don't tell me this stuff is eleven years old…"

Robin burst out laughing. "Come on Raven, we're not that bad! I swear this stuff is brand new and free of mysterious blue mold."

"Maybe it's new, but I doubt you've managed to keep the fuzzy blue mold off of it."

"Actually, believe it or not, there is no mold in our kitchen anymore."

"I don't believe it," said Raven flatly, floating in the air towards the kitchen. Robin leaned back on the couch smugly as she opened the refrigerator and gazed in awe. It was sparkling.

"Nicole runs a pretty tight ship. She keeps the place clean," explained Robin.

"Nicole?"

"Ah, you know her as Jinx. Remember how I said she married Cyborg? She lives here in the Tower with their children."

"Nicole!?"

Robin decided at that point that it would be best to ignore her. Raven was obviously frazzled.

By the time Cyborg had returned, they had settled into a comfortable silence. Raven was sipping her tea with a far-off look on her face and Robin was flipping through a magazine.

"Huh, I guess Starfire's tea came in handy," said Cyborg as he stole a glance into Raven's cup.

"Starfire's?"

"Yeah," supplied Robin. "She started drinking your tea after you left as a way to remember you. Eventually she became addicted."

"Hmmm…"

"Oh," jumped in Cyborg, "before I forget, the girls went into town for some shopping. We had to get Star out of the house before she started cooking. She was so nervous. Nicole took her out and brought Dinari with them."

"Nervous? Dinari?" Asked Raven.

"She was anxious for your return. She starts to get a little twitchy and reaches for her puddings. Ugg, and nobody wants that."

Raven had to stifle a chuckle. It was good to know some things never change. Then she came back to the matter at hand.

"Dinari?" She asked again.

"Oh, of course," started Cyborg, looking a little uncomfortable. "Dinari is my youngest son. He just turned five actually. You already met Chloe, she's seven now. We have another on the way too. Me and Nicole… Or Jinx, as you know her."

Cyborg looked to be waiting for some kind of response but Raven didn't know what to say. They trailed off into awkward silence. A few minutes later she spoke up.

"You are," Raven whispered, "happy together, yes?"

"Yes," he whispered back unnecessarily.

"Then I am happy for you," said Raven, smiling softly and breaking the tension.

Robin cleared his throat in an attempt to break the 'warm fuzzies' in the room. He had never been very comfortable in situations like this.

A crash in the hall interrupted any biting comments Robin might have made. Raven could hear muffled voices behind the door and looked up just as it 'whooshed' open.

First in the door was a woman she could only assume to be Jinx, if the bright pink hair was anything to go by. Her hair was longer now, down to the small of her back and poker straight. Her bangs were cut in jagged lines and fell into her unnatural eyes. She was laughing at the person unseen on the other side.

Thrown over her shoulder was a small sleeping boy, presumed to be Dinari. He had the same skin tone as his sister, who was tugging on her mother's skirt. Raven had to admit that they made a very attractive family, especially when she saw Vic walk over and kiss Jinx on the cheek in welcome.

As they moved out of the way, Raven was finally able to see the other visitor.

Or rather resident.

In the doorway stood Starfire, clutching the back of her head and laughing. It appeared that the crash had been her flying into the lighting fixture and knocking it into the ground. Robin was at her side in an instant, checking her for injuries. She tried swatting him off half-heartedly but let him see the bump on her head anyway.

With everyone together and laughing so innocently, time seemed to slow down. Raven seized the moment to observe Starfire, before she realized that her friend had come home at last.

She moved with a fluid grace, as if each move was calculated. She was extremely curvy but carried it well because her frame was so tall, easily over six feet. Her hair was longer and held back in a low ponytail fastened with silver. Her outfit was black and silver now, instead of the purple. She wore a breastplate of silver and silver bands up her arms. Her skirt was black and past her knees, with two long slits up the sides and fastened in place with a silver belt. Her feet were as bare as her midriff.

Starfire slowly scanned the room and gave Raven a chance to see her eyes. They were soft with laughter at the moment but she could see the unbearable sadness buried within. They looked too much like her own eyes and Raven could feel her heart twist at the sight.

"… Raven?" Whispered Starfire.

Time resumed its normal course as Starfire stepped over to her lost friend. Raven took an involuntary step backwards. Starfire took another step forward and Raven took another step back. Eventually Raven could go no further and bumped into the window.

"Is it you?" Asked Starfire as she reached out with a shaking hand. Raven flinched when she touched her cheek.

God, she was beautiful. Her emerald eyes were filling fast with tears but she was still radiant.

"Yes," whispered Raven, "I'm home."

Starfire pulled her into a tight hug and began to sob. Raven found herself clutching back blindly and could feel her own tears streaking down her face. She could feel the pressure building up and she knew something was about to explode.

She really didn't care.

There weren't many places she would rather be than right here.

Until the television blew up.

"Aw man!" Complained Cyborg and Chloe in unison. Raven could feel her face heating up as Starfire giggled into her hair.

She took it back. She didn't want to be here.

Anywhere but here.


End file.
